1997 Ford Contour Owner's Manual - Page 129

Steering Your Vehicle Your vehicle comes with power steering. Power steering uses energy from the engine to help steer your vehicle. If the amount of effort needed to steer your vehicle changes at a constant vehicle speed, have the power steering system checked. If the power steering system breaks down (or if the engine is turned off), you can steer the vehicle manually but it takes more effort. Never hold the steering wheel to the extreme right or left for more than five seconds if the engine is running. This can damage the power steering pump. Driving with an Automatic Overdrive Transaxle Your automatic overdrive transaxle provides fully automatic operation in either D (Overdrive) or with the transaxle control switch depressed. Driving with the shift selector in D (Overdrive) gives the best fuel economy for normal driving conditions. For manual control, start in 1 (First) and then shift manually. Putting Your Vehicle in Gear You must push in the thumb button to move the gearshift to the position you choose. RWARNING Hold the brake pedal down while you move the gearshift lever from position to position. If you do not hold the brake pedal down, your vehicle may move unexpectedly and injure someone. 130